Serial: "The Idiot" – Chapter 3

Release Date: March 26, 2026
Host & Reporter: EM Gessen
Production: Serial Productions & The New York Times

Episode Overview

This chapter takes listeners inside the murder-for-hire trial of Alan Gessen, the host’s cousin, accused of hiring someone to kill his ex-wife, Priscilla. EM Gessen attends the San Francisco trial to lay out the prosecution’s case for their family and to bear witness to the sometimes surreal, always disturbing details that emerge—from chilling undercover recordings to the defense's attempts at rationalization. The episode is a granular, gripping look at the anatomy of a trial, family loyalty, and the limits of empathy.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Arriving at the Trial: Family and Denial (00:17–05:18)

• EM Gessen attends Alan’s trial, describing his physical transformation—thin, stooped, with a gray beard—reflecting perhaps an attempt at playing for jury sympathy (00:17).
• Family reactions are mixed: some hope for vindication or entrapment, while EM admits, “In my mind, I had already tried and convicted Alan” (03:29).
• Even Priscilla, the intended victim, still doubts Alan is capable of such a plot.

Quote

“My motivation for attending the trial was to watch the prosecution lay out the case so I could bring it back to my family.” —EM Gessen (03:40)

Jury Selection and the Courtroom Drama (05:18–11:25)

• All three lead courtroom roles (judge, prosecutor, public defender) are women; the judge is unusually personable, fostering openness among jurors (05:18).
• The trial’s prosecution case centers on testimony by the undercover FBI agent (“David”), who was, in Gessen family lore, supposedly the instigator, but in reality, steers the sting operation.
• Jury and public can’t see David’s face, which becomes a surreal detail—EM notes, “we were staring at David’s crotch” during video testimony (05:47).

From Money Laundering to Murder: The Undercover Sting (07:17–26:23)

• The FBI’s investigation didn’t begin with Alan but with his shady business partner, Alexei Kiselev (07:19).
• Kiselev first approaches David with talk of laundering billions, but pivots to Alan’s custody woes and hope that Priscilla can be deported (08:08).
• Alan is introduced as a man used to solving things by bribes—immigration, child custody, and business deals (12:17).
• A Florida meeting at The Boca Raton Resort (10:29) marks the beginning of the undercover operation and Alan’s deepening self-incrimination.

Undercover Dialogue Highlights

“Look, I understand through Alex that you have some problems. I get it. You know we have a solution for you.” —David (13:51)

• At first, Alan seeks deportation for Priscilla ($100,000 bribe), but is quick to indicate openness to “a cheaper, more permanent way”—murder (18:21).
• Alan claims to have already researched the cost of a hit, getting quotes from “Israelis and Eastern Europeans and Italians” (19:03).

The Chilling Moment

“There’s a cheaper way to get rid of her.” —Alan Gessen (18:21)

“So I don’t know how to say this, but, like, there is a cheaper way and probably a more permanent way…” —Alan Gessen (18:49)

• Alan never hesitates, doesn’t question or negotiate murder, and insists only that his children aren’t witnesses to the violence (22:10–22:36).
• Later, in New York, Alan gives David a gold coin as payment and provides detailed instructions for Priscilla’s movements, even condoning collateral deaths in pursuit of “project objectives” (28:53–33:00).

Notable Message

“I am absolutely ambivalent to the modalities and circumstances. As long as we achieve project objectives, additional unexpected expenses are part of doing business.” —Alan Gessen (33:00)

Alan Takes the Stand: The Defense’s Threadbare Gambit (36:15–44:45)

• Unlike most defendants, Alan testifies, generating a surreal reversal from his overconfident past to a feeble, tearful presence (36:15).
• His defense: he’s always solved problems via bribes; he never intended murder, only deportation by “any means,” borrowing from “movie ideas” about physical extractions.
• Prosecutor Ilham Hosseini dissects this justification, exposing contradictions (“Definitely. In Boston is closer than Boston and Zimbabwe. Nonetheless, your goal was not to separate Priscilla from the children, was it?” —43:00).
• EM Gessen feels a complicated satisfaction at Alan’s public unmasking and calls out their own limits of empathy as a journalist.

Prosecution Cross-Examination

“You both lived in Boston and you want her deported to Zimbabwe so you can both co-parent internationally?” —Ilham Hosseini (43:10)

The Verdict and Aftermath (44:45–47:15)

• The guilty verdict comes swiftly; Priscilla is overcome with relief (44:45), having finally had her ordeal recognized as real.
• She says:

  “I think that the one thing that I lost throughout this experience was feeling as though my life was valuable… the amount of care and attention that’s been given… made me start feeling like I was a person. I didn’t have to deserve to be alive.” —Priscilla (45:53)

• Priscilla, and even EM Gessen, want “the maximum sentence” (46:48).
• The program ends with EM reflecting on the tension between their commitment to justice reform and personal desire for vengeance.

Memorable Quotes and Moments

• On Alan’s Readiness:

  “The time that elapses between the agent saying ‘that’s up to you’ and Allan’s agreement to proceed with the more permanent option is a fraction of a second.” —EM Gessen (19:08)

• On Rationalization:

  “All for the eminently reasonable price of $100,000. And we hadn’t even gotten to the murder for hire plot.” —EM Gessen (16:30)

• On Collateral Damage:

  “As long as we achieve project objectives, additional unexpected expenses are part of doing business.” —Alan Gessen via text (33:00)

• After the Verdict:

  “The verdict said, Allen is rotten. Objectively rotten. It was no longer her private war with Allen. It was now the United States versus Alan Gessen.” —EM Gessen (45:39)

Key Timestamps

• 00:17 — EM Gessen attends Alan’s trial, family context
• 05:18 — Courtroom and jury selection, prosecutor and judge characterization
• 10:29 — Undercover meeting at Boca Raton Resort
• 13:03–15:03 — Showcasing “gangster” personas, Alan’s braggadocio
• 18:21–19:03 — The moment deportation pivots to murder for hire
• 22:10–22:36 — Alan discusses not wanting kids to witness violence
• 29:24–33:00 — Logistics: payment, contract, willingness to accept collateral deaths
• 36:15 — Alan testifies, begins to unravel under cross-examination
• 44:45–47:15 — Verdict, Priscilla’s relief, closing reflections

Conclusion: Family, Justice, and Empathy in Ruins

In this devastating chapter of “The Idiot,” listeners are thrust into the emotional center of a high-stakes, high-drama courtroom. EM Gessen uses their proximity as both journalist and family to lay bare the limits of understanding—or “strategic empathy”—when faced with shocking betrayal. The tapes and testimony leave no room for mitigation: Alan wanted Priscilla dead, and only worried about appearances and logistics.

The trauma and danger endured by Priscilla is finally validated, as is the sorrow of a family forced to confront evil among their own. The episode ends on an uneasy note: justice is done, but the costs and implications remain unresolved, not only for the Gessens but for listeners grappling with similar questions of complicity, restitution, and forgiveness.

Stay tuned: Next chapter, EM Gessen delves into conversations with Alan himself, searching for meaning, understanding, or at least something resembling answers.